Crafts: Drawing

March 07, 2018

Passover is right around the corner, so how about starting by doodling a few elements that can be used to set the stage for the Passover story? Lets start with that oh so hot desert sun that the Jewish people certainly experienced in Egypt! There are so many ways to draw the sun, and one can and should spend a little time working on a few ideas to make your own version of this sun doodle. These were actually my second attempt, and I used the best ideas from my first try, which produced some which were more like stars!

Doodling on a ground of color, in this case circles that I painted with yellow gouache is so much fun, and the results immediately look like little works of art! I cut these suns out after I painted them, and will use them as part of a little assemblage project that I'm doing for Passover. i think they'd also make great gift tags, or elements for a garland or collage of any kind. So go to town with little doodle suns in a variety of sizes and you can't go wrong!

September 19, 2017

Does anyone other than me actually sit down and draw simple birthday cards, you know with a permanent marker and colored card stock? As you can see, I do, and fortunately so, as how else would I make a cute birthday card from the heart in ten minutes or so, in a pinch? Fourteen years ago today I gave birth to a sweet baby boy, and so today as my husband rushed off to pick him up at school and head out of the country for their yearly Rosh HaShana men's get away (that we women are honestly thrilled about, truly) I of course had to send some birthday treats, and at the least a card!

Other years I have sent birthday decorations and all kinds of things, but now that he is a big whopping fourteen, I know he'd rather celebrate in a slightly more private and less creativejewishmom manner, as they will be staying with a slew of other men and boys who do not have wives/mothers that would ever in a million years dream of sending birthday decorations in the suitcase!

September 18, 2017

Rosh HaShana is Wednesday night, so there is no time like the present to make fun cards for the new year and to keep the kids busy with crafts while you prepare for the holiday! If you are not a mom, so you may have even more time for crafting, and this little craft is fun for adults too......your fish may just look a bit more grown up, or maybe less detailed....you decide!

The tradition of giving cards for Rosh HaShana, to wish others a sweet new year (for starters) is a wonderful one, though we can certainly think a bit outside the box and make cards that are not actually cards, but in this case little stuffed shapes! And if you really want to take this craft one step further, include some little loops of ribbon for hanging before stapling it all together, and then these Rosh HaShana cards can become sukkah decorations as well, yippee!

July 12, 2017

We are now at the beginning of the mourning period on the Jewish calendar known as "The Three Weeks" and of course since many are on summer vacation, doing some crafting that is relevant to the time period is a must! it is true, there are all kinds of laws whose observance helps us not to forget, but the greatest reminder is to quite simply to get busy thinking about Jerusalem, and I'm here to help you with that! There is something about doodling that is just perfect for summer, and anyone can do it, so I thought that coming up with doodle patterns that depict Jerusalem would be perfect right about now. I've chosen to use Jerusalem domed houses and buildings, cypress trees and the stones of the Kotel as my doodling elements, though I'm sure you can some up with some more. So doodle a bunch of pages, and then color them, and/or set them aside to use for crafting. What crafting you may ask? Stay tuned for that one my dear readers!

July 10, 2017

Aren't these pencil drawing exercises that my fourteen year old daughter drew just wonderful? Sometimes one forgets the magic of simply putting pencil to paper, especially if one learns some oh so important lessons in how to actually depict light, shadow and volume! Of course there are those artistic geniuses out there that just naturally understand these kinds of things, but most of us benefit greatly from art lessons, and specifically in this case drawing lessons that give one the tools to really create something special. And yes, we do realize that the fruit look rather mechanical, but that was in fact the point in order to really drive home the power of the technique.

And speaking of techniques, keep reading to take a closer look to see the pencil drawing tricks one can learn, I think I want to do it too......it looks amazing!

June 06, 2017

For my son's recent guitar themed birthday party I didn't have much of a plan, but I did want to decorate with as many cardboard guitars as i could possibly make in one day, and i just love how these turned out. Simple enough so that you can whip up a bunch, but at the same time really great looking and sophisticated enough to use for adult parties or gatherings of any kind. Make your guitar using a few layers of cardboard, add a strap, and use it as part of a costume or a child's toy. And of course they perfectly compliment the ice cream cone and guiltar party garland that also made for the party.

While I didn't realize it at the time, these guitars are also a perfect compliment to any Mexican, South American or Spanish style party, so as you can see I photographed them together with a Mexcian blanket, and some mini sombreros, so go make yourself some guiltars, and say Ole!

June 05, 2017

Make a fun garland that matches the theme of your party with just a few simple supplies, some simple line drawings and the more creativity the better, especially when it comes to making use of cardboard, paper and packaging that can all be put to great use! This ice creme cone and guitar birthday party garland came about quite simply because the pattern on the boxes of matza that we enjoyed this Passover had that gridded pattern, and ice cream cones came to mind, and the guitars are in keeping with the overall theme of guitars (as we surprised my son with a new guitar.) Surely an original combination and I just love how it works with the musical note faux helium balloon decoration. Are my decorations totally crisp and perfect looking? NO, first of all because they were basically made on the spot with no planning ahead, and secondly because that is the beauty of them, in my humble opinion. Decorations that look homemade will feel like they are from the heart, and that after all is the true purpose, right?

Ready to make something similar but with your own unique twist? Let's get started......

May 08, 2017

Drawing with colored pencils can be so much fun, especially if one draws cute little objects, like this collection of plastic angry bird pencil toppers. My daughter did this entirely on her own, only showing it to me after the fact, and I just love what she did. I'm so pleased to see evidence that her drawing skills are moving forward on account of her weekly drawing and painting class! I think she did a great job giving these little guys volume, and the proportions are good too, skills her teacher is certainly working on with her. And the self motivation to practice on her own, well one really can't hope for more than that, big giant phew!

Ready to get your kids drawing, using a subject matter that they will be interested in (rather than a still life of fruit, for example), okay let's get started!

April 27, 2017

Here's a fun recycled cardboard tube craft, in this case I used paper towel tubes, that is perfect just about any time really......though of course with the Jewish holiday of Lag B'Omer coming up, that is what I have made them for. Lag B'Omer involves bonfires, generally really huge ones in our neck of the woods, so all things log and campfire related are perfect. It is true, many Lag B'Omer bonfires are fueled by olive oil, or made from towers of crates and palettes and old furniture, but logs are just so much cuter, I'm sure you'll agree!

So lets make a bunch of cute logs, faux bois style, shall we? Oh, haven't heard of faux bois? That may just be a crafting faux pas, so lets get you up to steam. Faux bois means fake wood, namely anything with a wood grain pattern or made to look like branches, even sculpted. Are you with me? Now lets get crafting and doodling!

December 14, 2016

Here's a fun idea for turning your kid's drawings into cute holiday decorations, and not only does it only take a few minutes, but it sure beats putting them on the fridge! And once the holiday or occasion is over, you can simply remove the lights and store flat until next year. And before you know it you just might have a whole gallery full of fun kid's art to pull out any time. It also just occurred to me to gently remind you as well that when we make an effort to show our kids how much we love their art, they'll be encouraged to make more!